US 8,019,643 B2 · System and method for incorporating packaging and shipping ramifications of net profit/loss when up-selling

Abstract

An up-sell and down-sell method and system that considers a ranking of the individual marginal profit/loss of adding every product SKU of a merchant to an order (or a certain subset of SKU's based on other criteria), considering not only certain traditional fixed metrics the merchant may define such as product gross margins, credit card fees and labor costs (the cost of the pick)—but most importantly, variable packaging and shipping costs as well. In particular, the invention focuses on the packaging and shipping ramifications of up-selling every potential merchant SKU (or a certain subset of SKU's based on other criteria) to customer's order and down-selling each item already in customer's order. Once an adjusted net profit/loss ranking by SKU is available that considers variable shipping and packaging ramifications of up-selling such SKU to an existing order, a merchant can then determine to factor such ranking in how it up-sells or down-sells—including but not limited to up-selling certain SKU's and not others, structuring different discounts on different SKU's and potentially incentivizing customers to delete certain items in their order.

Drawings

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Drawings

Claims30

Dependent claims

A system to up-selling goods or services to a customer order, the system comprising:

a memory configured to store information related to a customer order;
and
a processor configured to process the stored information related to the customer order, the processor being configured to perform operations comprising:
receiving, with at least one processor, information related to a customer order for goods or services;
determining, with at least one processor, a first cost related to shipping and packaging the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, information related to at least two options associated with the customer order to present to the customer for up-selling additional goods or services related to the customer order, the at least two options being associated with information for a net profit metric, the net profit metric including information for at least one of a profit and a loss associated with the at least two options;
determining, with the at least one processor, a second cost related to shipping and packaging the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an incremental packaging and shipping cost at least from the first and second costs, the incremental packaging and shipping cost relating to a cost for packaging and shipping the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an adjusted net profit for up-selling the additional goods or services with the customer order, the adjusted net profit being determined at least from the net profit metric and the incremental packaging and shipping cost;
ranking, with the at least one processor, the at least two options to present to the customer for up-selling the additional goods or services related to the customer order based on the adjusted net profit;
and
presenting, for a graphical user interface (GUI), information for the at least two options based upon the ranking.

9 more elements

A method for up-selling goods or services to a customer order, the method comprising:

receiving, with at least one processor, information related to a customer order for goods or services;
determining, with at least one processor, a first cost related to shipping and packaging the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, information related to at least one option associated with the customer order to present to the customer for up-selling additional goods or services related to the customer order, the option being associated with information for a net profit metric, the net profit metric including information for at least one of a profit and a loss associated with the option;
determining, with the at least one processor, a second cost related to shipping and packaging the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an incremental packaging and shipping cost at least from the first and second costs, the incremental packaging and shipping cost relating to a cost for packaging and shipping the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an adjusted net profit for up-selling the additional goods or services with the customer order, the adjusted net profit being determined at least from the net profit metric and the incremental packaging and shipping cost;
determining whether there is a positive adjusted net profit;
determining whether to present the at least one option to the customer for up-selling the additional goods or services related to the customer order based upon determining that there is the positive adjusted net profit;
and
presenting, for a graphical user interface (GUI), information for the at least one option based upon the determination to present the at least one option to the customer for up-selling the additional goods or services related to the customer order.

7 more elements

A method for up-selling goods or services to a customer order, the method comprising:

receiving, with at least one processor, information related to a customer order for goods or services;
determining, with at least one processor, a first cost related to shipping and packaging the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, information related to at least two options associated with the customer order to present to the customer for up-selling additional goods or services related to the customer order, the at least two options being associated with information for a net profit metric, the net profit metric including information for at least one of a profit and a loss associated with the at least two options;
determining, with the at least one processor, a second cost related to shipping and packaging the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an incremental packaging and shipping cost at least from the first and second costs, the incremental packaging and shipping cost relating to a cost for packaging and shipping the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an adjusted net profit for up-selling the additional goods or services with the customer order, the adjusted net profit being determined at least from the net profit metric and the incremental packaging and shipping cost;
ranking, with the at least one processor, the at least two options to present to the customer for up-selling the additional goods or services related to the customer order based on the adjusted net profit;
and
presenting, for a graphical user interface (GUI), information for the at least two options based upon the ranking.

6 more elements

A non-transitory computer-readable medium for up-selling goods or services to a customer order, the non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions to cause a computer to perform operations comprising:

receiving, with at least one processor, information related to a customer order for goods or services;
determining, with at least one processor, a first cost related to shipping and packaging the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, information related to at least two options associated with the customer order to present to the customer for up-selling additional goods or services related to the customer order, the at least two options being associated with information for a net profit metric, the net profit metric including information for at least one of a profit and a loss associated with the at least two options;
determining, with the at least one processor, a second cost related to shipping and packaging the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an incremental packaging and shipping cost at least from the first and second costs, the incremental packaging and shipping cost relating to a cost for packaging and shipping the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an adjusted net profit for up-selling the additional goods or services with the customer order, the adjusted net profit being determined at least from the net profit metric and the incremental packaging and shipping cost;
ranking, with the at least one processor, the at least two options to present to the customer for up-selling the additional goods or services related to the customer order based on the adjusted net profit;
and
presenting, for a graphical user interface (GUI), information for the at least two options based upon the ranking.

6 more elements

A system to up-selling goods or services to a customer order, the system comprising:

a memory configured to store information related to a customer order;
and
a processor configured to process the stored information related to the customer order, the processor being configured to perform operations comprising:
receiving, with at least one processor, information related to the customer order for goods or services;
determining, with at least one processor, a first cost related to shipping and packaging the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, information related to at least one option associated with the customer order to present to the customer for up-selling additional goods or services related to the customer order, the option being associated with information for a net profit metric, the net profit metric including information for at least one of a profit and a loss associated with the option;
determining, with the at least one processor, a second cost related to shipping and packaging the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an incremental packaging and shipping cost at least from the first and second costs, the incremental packaging and shipping cost relating to a cost for packaging and shipping the additional goods or services with the customer order;
determining, with the at least one processor, an adjusted net profit for up-selling the additional goods or services with the customer order, the adjusted net profit being determined at least from the net profit metric and the incremental packaging and shipping cost;
determining whether there is a positive adjusted net profit;
determining whether to present the at least one option to the customer for up-selling the additional goods or services related to the customer order based upon determining that there is the positive adjusted net profit;
and
presenting, for a graphical user interface (GUI), information for the at least one option based upon the determination to present the at least one option to the customer for up-selling the additional goods or services related to the customer order.

10 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Description4,743 words

Summary627 words

#The present invention was not developed with the use of any Federal Funds, but was developed independently by the inventor.

#Up-selling is a cornerstone practice of most catalog and e-commerce merchants. In many instances, especially low margin industries, the art of up-selling may comprise most of the profit made by a merchant. During the ordering process online merchants have traditionally sought to up-sell products to the customer on a range of metrics. These include, but are not limited to, product preferences the customer has indicated, similar products to the items already in customer's order, products other customers have historically added with the same order, and products with the highest gross margin.

#To date, merchants have not considered all of the packaging and shipping ramifications of which particular products or SKU's they up-sell or down-sell and how. Specifically, at any given point in time, a merchant has a defined, limited set of boxes the merchant can employ to package and ship a customer's order. Up-selling certain products with certain dimensions and weights often requires a packaging reconfiguration. This occurs, for example, where the additional product does not fit in the optimal box for the original order. Hence, up-selling different products usually results in different optimal packaging reconfigurations. For example, instead of using BOX A with a certain dimension that packages the existing order optimally, merchant may now have to use BOX D with a certain larger dimension to package the order optimally. Each reconfiguration usually has a different net packaging and shipping cost. All other costs and preferences being equal (which they obviously are not), it will be preferable to up-sell certain SKU's more than others and relatedly, and perhaps to incentivize (by discounts or otherwise), certain SKU's more than others.

Brief description of the drawings2 figures

#The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of various embodiments of the present invention, will be better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purpose of illustrating the embodiments, there are shown in the drawings embodiments which are presently preferred. As should be understood, however, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown. In the drawings:

#FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example of a computing environment within which various embodiments of the present invention may be implemented and

#FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an up-selling tool instantiated on a computing device showing some of the steps of the method and system in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

Detailed description3,986 words

#The aforementioned needs are satisfied at least in part by a method and system for considering packaging and shipping cost ramifications when up-selling different products. The method is performed by an up-selling tool that is instantiated on a computing device.

#The tool comprises a subsystem for determining the incremental shipping and packaging cost associated with up-selling each product, the incremental shipping and packaging determining subsystem comprising a subsystem for simulating an optimal or a near-optimal packaging solution for minimizing the net shipping and packaging associated with up-selling each product. A subsystem is provided for determining the adjusted net profit associated with up-selling each product which considers the incremental shipping costs and packaging costs of up-selling such product. A subsystem is provided determining at least one candidate product to be offered to the customer for up-selling based on the incremental shipping and packaging cost associated with each of the at least one products. A subsystem is also provided for offering the at least one candidate product for up-selling to the customer. The packaging solution may be based on the available room or weight in the existing box for the customer's order prior to up-selling, the need and additional cost of a larger box in inventory if room or weight is unavailable and the need and cost (packaging and shipping) of an additional box if no single available box will fit the candidate product within volume or weight restrictions.

#The tool may include a subsystem for ranking the at least one candidate products based on an adjusted net profit that considers the incremental shipping and packaging cost associated with up-selling the at least one candidate product. And, the offering subsystem offers at least one of the candidate products to be up-sold to the customer based on the ranking. The ranking subsystem may base the ranking on a stored ranking of products available for up-selling based on the adjusted net profit of up-selling each product.

Facts

Application

12/126,435Filed 23 May 2008 · us provisional application

Priority

25 May 2007

Published

US 2008/0294477 A127 Nov 2008

Granted

13 Sep 2011

Term ends

11 Aug 2029

Estimated · how

20 years from earliest known nonprovisional domestic filing plus recorded patent term adjustment, including 445 days of adjustment. Maintenance-fee lapses, terminal disclaimers and statutory extensions have not been checked. The continuity chain may be incomplete; this is not an enforceability determination.

Classification7 codes

G06Q 30/06
Commerce: buying, selling or leasing transactions
G06Q 10/06375
Strategic management or analysis, e.g. setting a goal or target of an organisation; Planning actions based on goals; Analysis or evaluation of…:…
G06Q 30/0207
Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising: discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
G06Q 30/0251
Advertisements: targeted advertisements

Timeline

25 May 2007Priority claimedParent application 60/940,132
23 May 2008Application filedUS 12/126,435
27 Nov 2008PublishedUS 2008/0294477 A1
22 Apr 2010Assigned to Wells Fargo Bank, National Associationamended and reinstated intellctual property security agreement
28 Oct 2010Assigned to Quidsi, Inc.assignment of assignor's interest
13 Sep 2011GrantedUS 8,019,643 B2
12 Oct 2026TodayWithin its term
11 Aug 2029Term endsEstimated, includes 445 days of adjustment

System and method for incorporating packaging and shipping ramifications of net profit/loss when up-selling

Life of this patent

System and method for incorporating packaging and shipping ramifications of net profit/loss when up-selling

Life of this patent

Life of this patent

Abstract

Drawings

Drawings

Claims30

Description4,743 words

Drawings

Classification7 codes

Life of this patent

Description4,743 words